Category: Business Leader

Even though social responsibility is not a legal requirement, it is essential for businesses to operate in a way that benefits the society as well as the environment. This is a fact that JD.com, a China-based e-commerce retailer giant understands all too well. Since its inception, JD.com, also known as Jingdong has always been on the frontline of addressing social and environmental issues through its unique production methods as well as spreading goodwill through charity donations the less fortunate. The company always goes the extra mile in ensuring transparency with its over 300 million active users as well as suppliers and partners by informing the public about its various social responsibility projects.

For instance, it recently released a corporate social responsibility report in which it highlights its multiple projects since 2013. The report gives in-depth details on how Jingdong has been changing the lives of people as well as impacting the environment positively by highlighting some of its projects. In the past five years, JD.com has donated over a million clothing items and more than 40,000 toys to the less privileged. To enable those who come from less fortunate areas attain self-sufficiency the company sources more than 3 million of its products from rural areas.

To ensure environmental sustainability, Jingdong also reports that it replaced over 5000 fuel fleet vehicles with more energy efficient ones as a way to reduce the environmental impact caused by emissions from the latter. In addition, its environmental sustainability initiatives such as the Green Stream Initiative has helped reduce emissions and waste significantly through recycling. As a result, this has been beneficial to the society, the environment as well as to JD.com as some of its social responsibility programs enable it to cut costs. For instance, in the report, the company says that through its innovative program it has been able to save approximately 250 million meters of packaging tape.

About JD.com

As mentioned at the beginning, Jingdong is a China-based e-commerce giant. It is situated explicitly in Beijing and is among the pioneers of online shopping in the Asian realm. Led by Richard Liu, the company has been changing the perception of business through its innovative use of technology for the greater benefit of everyone. It is the largest online retail company in the region.

Eric Lefkofsky is one of the most powerful people in the field of technology in Chicago and the Co-founder of Groupon. During his life, he donated millions of dollars for the cancer research. He is now struggling hard and following a startup company which is in the race of finding the cure of cancers. Since Mr. Lefkofsky left his CEO position at Groupon, Chicago Inno after that learned that he has been working with a health-tech startup named as Tempus. This health-tech startup was focusing on to build the infrastructure which could modernize the cancer treatment. Their company was also found working silently with the Lightbank. It’s a VC firm of early-stage whose founder is Mr. Eric Lefkofsky.

Few people who have the knowledge of matter about the company state that Mr. Lefkofsky is the company’s president of a corporate/LLC search through the Illinois Secretary of State for Tempus Health Inc. According to a website of Tempus, it says that it is actually serving the healthcare professionals and doctors who make personalized and real-time treatment decisions on the basis of patient’s data. They make these decisions by analyzing a patient’s genetic code in the context of molecular therapies. According to Tempus, the advanced genomic sequencing and analysis methods are used by them which aid doctors to understand a tumor of a patient better. According to their website, the data collected by Tempus is useful in a sense to help doctors to create better care plans and treatment for the patients.

The Tempus website also proclaims that it gathers and analyzes the huge amount of genomic data by using proprietary algorithms and statistical analysis. This collected data is used to reveal opportunities for a patient’s physician by providing more modified and precise medicine. After working with patients with pancreatic, lungs and breast cancer, Tempus believes that it can find cures for more types of cancers in the future eventually. Through the Lefkofsky Family Foundation, Mr. Eric and his Wife Liz often donate money for cancer research causes. About over $1 million was donated by Mr. Eric to the Comprehensive Cancer Center of Robert H. Lurie at Northwestern University.

Stream Energy is a company that is really serious about philanthropy and particularly passionate about giving back to its home state of Texas. When it comes to philanthropy at Stream Energy, the whole team is involved. From the executive leadership team to entry-level employees, the Stream team all get involved in the charitable work that the firm does. Charitable work has become such a big part of what Stream Energy does that the company has founded a special department called Stream Cares for the specific purpose of charitable works. The Steam Cares team have been busy helping to further the Stream Energy reputation for philanthropy. This is being accomplished through to significant efforts that are regularly made by the company’s employees in the spirit of giving back. Patch is a place that has made a big effort to feature the philanthropic work that is done by the team at Stream Energy.

Many of the communities of the state of Texas were devastated when Hurricane Harvey came roaring through. This storm cut a real path of destruction that left many with their lives completely upended. This is whereorganizations like Stream come in and the company did not hesitate to mobilize Stream Cares to help out with this desperate situation. Helping to give assistance to Dallas area homeless individuals is another big project that the Stream Cares team has been engaged in recently. The organization joined up with a group called Hope Supply Co. in order to provide this essential assistance to the needy of Dallas, Texas. Stream Energy is known for providing top-notch electricity services and servicesfor various aspects of customer’s lives. With Stream Cares, the company is providing to those that are in need of it. Supporting the efforts of local communities is a top priority to the Stream Cares team. It is not a surprise to see such an innovative company also making such significant efforts toward community service and philanthropy. Stream has one of the most unique business models in the energy business and the company and its representatives take a great deal of pride in passing along their successes in the form of philanthropy.

William Saito, tech entrepreneur and founder of I/O Software (a company eventually acquired by Microsoft), has a long history of being ahead of the curve when it comes to emerging technologies. The Japanese-American grew up in Walnut Grove, California, in the 1970’s and 1980’s, close to the area that would become Silicon Valley, and as a child and teenager worked closely with then-new personal computers like the Apple II in the burgeoning digital age. As a college student, he started security company I/O Software out of his dorm room, and – especially after Japanese investors took an interest – the company became highly effective and trusted brand it is today.

William Saito’s Thoughts on Russian Technology

Historically, the contributions of Russia to science and technology have been enormous, from helping to complete the periodic table to pioneering the radio. However, today there are no global Russian tech brands on the level of companies such as Sony or Microsoft. William Saito believes that this is likely to change and that western investors are wise to look to Russia to see which emerging technologies and companies are going to be profitable going forward.

William Saito, Cyber-security Pioneer

William Saito’s interest in cyber-security dates back to his adolescence when he would break down software simply to see how it worked. He learned how software and systems could be made more secure and used his business skills to develop and market valuable protection for his clients. His background in digital security as well as being present during the early days of the personal computer revolution in Silicon Valley make him one of the most highly sought-after experts on cyber-security issues in the world today. Furthermore, growing up in a Japanese-American household and later traveling extensively between Asia and the United States give him useful cultural perspectives.

Vinod Gupta grew up in New Delhi, and his humble beginnings carried with them great life lessons that have shaped him into the multi-billion person he is today. Vinod is Managing General Partner at Everest Group where he is responsible for turning underperforming companies into great success using his decades of experience.

Vinod Gupta is not only a diligent businessman but also a philanthropist who enjoys giving back to the society. He values education and its benefits. Therefore, Vinod makes education possible for those who would otherwise not access it. To advance his mission, Vinod has built schools in the impoverished parts of India and funded ongoing courses. Vinod aims at helping others, and his satisfaction is knowing his wealth is assisting others to get real opportunities.

Vinod Gupta donated $1 million to Ram Rati Gupta Polytechnic to enable its development. This polytechnic was founded in 2000 and is behind many women earning their postgraduate degrees within two years. It is technology-focused and aims to have successful independent Indian women. The institution offers courses in textile design, information technology, computer applications and webs design. Gupta has also set aside funds to build a girls’ school within Rampur Maniharan. He has provided all that they may need including buses and textbooks to facilitate their success. In the past, women were not given the same educational opportunities as the men, and Vinod Gupta has closed this educational gap, helping the local community towards embracing gender equality.

Vinod Gupta received his bachelor’s degree from Indian Institute of Technology and later pursued his masters in agricultural engineering and business at the University of Nebraska, on a scholarship. He has therefore set up a $500,000 scholarship fund to provide financial aid to minority students who want to study science or engineering at the university. Vinod is vocal about his desire to help individuals who have grown in similar circumstances as his, in the cost of studies. Within the last twenty years, he has donated over $50 million to advance education. He believes in “paying it forward” and has never seen wealth as a source of happiness.

Michael Burwell is a CPA and a Michigan State University alumnus, who graduated with a B.A. in Business Administration. He also believes in longevity and applying maximum effort towards any role that he is tasked with.

Michael Burwell got the selection as the Chief Finance Officer at Willis Towers Watson. The position came due to his dedication, hard work as well as an educational background that any inventor can covet. He acquired his degree in business accounting giving him a better shot at the leader in finance. Since his entrance into the company, he got the privilege to work in various departments and some being very crucial such as finance and in business opportunities present.

For years, Michael Burwell has grown to gain a good reputation due to his grit and ambition. He believes that he succeeds due to relentless. Regardless of the negative feedbacks people may present, he testifies that giving a deaf ear and pursuing one’s dreams is the way to thrive. Moreover, he is always positive which provides him with the hope that everything will work out just fine.

According to Michael Burwell, for business to grow one requires to be understanding, build networks as well as work with others as a team. Therefore, one has to be an excellent communicator to exchange opinions and information. Besides, teamwork is crucial in making the ideas to come to life. For Burwell, he collects the views of other people and puts them on the table together with his. He later writes down a plan of how they will word resulting in growth in the business venture.

As a determined person, he likes perfection. Therefore, every day he wakes up early in the morning and engages in activities that would give him an environment of meditation. He gets to evaluate his achievements and the aspects to improve on. Besides, during this time he gets to plan his day to ensure it’s productive.

The urge to know more makes him research more to be productive. For instance, he has read several books that give additional tips on how to succeed. Michael Burwell loves the technology to and believes it is a channel for growth. Therefore, he keeps up with the trend by sharing apps that have assisted him. Through interaction, he also gets to acquire other supportive apps that pave the way to be more productive.

He believes that any business investment can get challenges. Some are easy to overcome while others may lead to ruin. For this reason, he cautions on investing into a venture without analysis. As said that experience is the best teacher, he related to the closure of one company he ventured into but failed. He advises investors to check not only the current situation but also the growth and changes in the market to know the best venture to conduct.

Sheldon Lavin is one of the most respected authorities in the food and meat processing industry. He is a reputable leader with vast experience in building and developing business empires. Sheldon Lavin is the president of OSI Industries and has led the company into a global food processing company. Lavin has been in the food industry for more than 40 years. He first got involved in the food industry in 1970, where he was the chief financier of Otto & Sons, a domestic food company. Under his leadership the business has grown to become one of the leading protein suppliers in the world, and one of the top 100 private companies in America.

Sheldon Lavin is an accountant and financial consultant by profession. Before joining the OSI industries, he worked in banks, and also operated a financial consulting firm. He has used his professional knowledge and skills to grow the OSI Group. Lavin’s intelligence and hard work was recognized in 2016 when he was presented with a prestigious Global Visionary Award from India’s Vision World Academy. The award honors visionary leaders who have turned their dreams into reality. Sheldon is also a board of trustee of Rush University Medical Centre and the director of the wildlife foundation. He is an active participant in charitable programs like the Sheba Foundation.

Under his watch, the company has made acquisitions and expansions to be able to grow their global market trends and reach out to their clients worldwide. Recently, the OSI purchased the Baho Foods, a Dutch food processing company that will increase the OSI group products awareness in Europe. The firm has also acquired the Flagship Europe, which has also expanded the company’s presence in Europe. The OSI international food has dominated the food industry company through its visionary team of leaders led by Sheldon Lavin. In 2016, the company was presented with the Globe of honor award by the British safety council for their excellent environmental management causes.

The food production firm has joint ventures in the United Kingdom, Germany and Canada. In 2014, the company joint venture with Pickstock was a profitable venture to the OSI since it increased the company’s beef distribution in Europe. Sheldon has been the man behind the company’s success. He has also embraced green innovations in leading the company to world-class food manufacture. Today the company has more 60 operational facilities in over 17 countries, with a workforce of more than 20,000 workers.

Adam Milstein is an Israeli-American businessman and a philanthropist. Most of his philanthropic works aim at supporting the Jewish people and Israel as a whole. He is also the co-founder of the Adam and Gila Milstein Family Foundation, with his wife, Gila. The foundation was founded in 2000, and it supports Pro-Israel establishments such as the Israeli-American Council (IAC), Hasbara Fellowship, American Jewish Committee, and Christian United for Israel among other organizations. Mr. Milstein is the chairperson of the Israeli-American Council.

Adam Milstein was born and raised in Israel where he attended school. During the Yon Kippur War, Mr. Milstein served the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), and in 1978 he graduated from the military Technion. He moved to the United States of America in 1981 and attended the University of Southern California (USC) where he acquired his MBA. He started investing in the real estate domain after his graduation and he is currently a managing partner at a real estate investing company called Hager Pacific Properties. He manages the company’s financing, outlook, and management of its property. Mr. Milstein has been working in the real estate industry since 1983.

The investor and philanthropist is also an author, and has a blog site called “Times of Israel.” He recently wrote a blog titled “Diaspora Jews Will Rise to Meet Our Challenges with Israel in Our Hearts.” Throughout the blog, he acknowledges that Israelis have been faced with different challenges from time immemorial and it took the courage of able leaders to maneuver through these challenges. Furthermore, Adam Milstein asserts that the challenges facing Israel now can be taken care of by able leaders among the Jewish people living in the Diaspora. According to Milstein, the Jewish American leaders should encourage and teach their people about the Jewish culture and ensure that the Jewish generation thrives. Adam Milstein has kick started this initiative by meeting with future pro-Israel activists and leaders to discuss Israeli concerns. Adam Milstein lives an everyday social life just like ordinary citizens. Adam and Gila have three children and three grandchildren. Adam’s background depicts that a person can thrive well in the business domain while at the same time impacting positively on the society.